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Jorge Messi died early Saturday at a medical clinic in his hometown of Rosario after battling an unspecified illness for several months, according to a statement from his family that ESPN carried in its reporting. The 68-year-old had served as his son’s representative since Lionel turned 14 and played a central role in navigating the early stages of a career that produced eight Ballon d’Or awards. Confirmation of the death came hours after local Argentine media began reporting the news, with both AP News and The Guardian citing hospital sources in the central Argentine city. Lionel Messi, currently 39 and active with Inter Miami and the Argentina national team, was not immediately available for comment through his representatives.
Newell’s Old Boys, the club where Lionel Messi began his career at age seven, issued a detailed tribute that described Jorge Messi as the pillar supporting his son’s path from the Malvinas youth academy to international glory. The club statement, distributed via social media and republished by talkSPORT, expressed profound pain while thanking Jorge for teaching Lionel to love the team’s colors. It extended condolences to wife Celia Cuccittini, sons Lionel, Rodrigo and Matias, daughter Maria Sol, and all close relatives. The club had maintained a close connection with the Messi family since the player’s youth days in Rosario, according to an assessment published by Sports Illustrated.
Barcelona, where Lionel Messi rose to prominence and secured four Champions League titles along with 10 La Liga crowns over 17 seasons, offered its condolences in a statement carried by multiple outlets including ESPN. The club credited Jorge Messi with entrusting the institution with his son’s development during the family’s relocation to Spain in February 2001. At that time Jorge remained in Barcelona with the 13-year-old Lionel while other family members returned to Argentina, a detail highlighted in coverage from The Guardian. The move followed Barcelona’s decision to sign the youngster despite his growth hormone deficiency, with Jorge overseeing the transition.
The Argentine Football Association expressed deep sorrow over the passing of the father of its captain and emblem, according to an official statement reproduced by BBC Sport and Goal.com. The governing body offered solidarity and an affectionate embrace to the entire family during this period of mourning. Additional tributes poured in across the football community, with Goal.com noting an outpouring of messages that recognized Jorge Messi’s belief in his son from the earliest days at Newell’s Old Boys. The collective response underscored the father’s influence on one of the sport’s most decorated careers.
Earlier this summer the Messi family had released a statement addressing speculation about Jorge’s health during the World Cup, describing it as a private health-related situation without providing further details, as reported by both BBC Sport and Reuters. That statement followed a false television report of his death that prompted the presenter to resign and drew criticism from the family for lack of sensitivity. The Guardian noted that Jorge had undergone treatment in recent months, aligning with the long-illness description that appeared consistently across independent reporting from AP News and ESPN. Public focus on his condition intensified as Argentina prepared for international fixtures.
Jorge Messi’s role extended beyond family support into professional representation, where he helped shape contract negotiations and career decisions that kept Lionel at the highest levels of the game for two decades, according to an overview provided by Sports Illustrated. His presence at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, where Argentina claimed the title, marked a culminating moment in a partnership that began in Rosario’s youth pitches. Coverage from talkSPORT and other outlets emphasized how the father’s constant companionship proved essential through challenges that included the family’s transatlantic move and Lionel’s adaptation to European football at a young age.
